Center of Fair Futures providing tutoring and mentoring for foster youth
The center provides tutoring and mentoring to foster youth, and one young woman from the program says it saved her life.
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New York City is bringing aid to those in foster care, even those who age out, partially thanks to the Center of Fair Futures.
The center provides tutoring and mentoring to foster youth, and one young woman from the program says it saved her life.
Shyanne Shepherd entered the foster care system at a young age and bounced around multiple foster homes, all while keeping good grades.
"School was like that outlet for me to escape," said Shepherd. "I knew that when I got to school I wouldn't have to deal with everything I was dealing with at home."
Shepherd met her last foster mom at age 17, and after giving birth at 18 enrolled in school. She was matched with a college coach through HeartShare St. Vincent Services, which is located in downtown Brooklyn and is one of 26 agencies under the Fair Futures program helping those who have aged out of the system.
"[They] made sure I was on top of every application I needed to send, [they] made sure I was on top of my financial aid," said Shepherd.
Now Shepherd is on track to graduate from school with a criminal justice degree next May, and is eyeing a career in law enforcement.
"If it wasn't for them, I would honestly have not gone back to school," said Shepherd. "Sometimes you need that motivation, you need that push."
